As the spring semester begins, students continue to find parking at San Diego City College a struggle.

Last fall, City changed from a tangible parking permit to a digital parking permit and closed parking lot 5 to make way for a student housing project.

This semester, students are still adjusting to both. Here’s how we got to this point.

Lot 5 closes, taking offline 125 spots

In August 2025, City opened parking lot 5 and provided students access to over 125 spaces when the semester started.

City soon after announced the closure of the lot  to make way for a new student housing project.

The lot was only opened for a short time and confused students on when and how to park, both when it was open and after it closed.

Chrisdan Peralta, who is a member of the City Times Media staff, found himself parking on an unmarked curb within the lot and later discovered a parking ticket from the San Diego Community College District police.

“There was no color on the lines, no sign or anything saying I couldn’t park there,” Peralta said. “Everyone else was doing it so I decided to do it as well,” 

The unmarked curbs led drivers to believe they could park, but ended up with tickets plastered on their front windows.

In a follow-up interview this semester, Peralta feels that the loss of the lot led to parking becoming more of an issue.

“Trying to find (parking) at lot 3, for example, it’s always full now and then the MS building is also always full now,” Peralta said.

Some students are opting to park on the city streets and pay meters to avoid the risk of getting ticketed in campus parking lots.

New digital parking permits available

A new digital parking permit also debuted in the fall, a change from the physical permit that students were used to that led to confusion among students who didn’t know if there was a grace period or not due to the change.

This spring, students have a two-week grace period to obtain a parking permit that started on Feb. 2 and is set to end on Feb. 16.

To purchase a $40 permit for the semester, students are able to log-in through their student portal to buy it online or they can go in-person to Student Accounting located at A-256.

The permit will give students access to parking on all San Diego Community College District campuses.

Students eligible for financial aid can get a $25 discount on the permit. Additionally, Extended Opportunity Programs and Services students are able to get a parking permit or the bus/trolley pass for free.

Students who receive a parking citation can pay or appeal online or call 619-388-6416.

More information on parking

Despite difficulties that linger from last semester, information is available to make finding parking a bit easier for students.

The structure with the most parking is the V building with nine levels of parking, making it easy to find it no matter the time of day.

The MS building has 10 levels but it fills up quickly in the morning, clearing out by the afternoon.

Lot 3 is shared with Garfield High School and has the least amount of parking available with only 2 levels, though the parking usually clears out by 1 p.m.

This story was edited by Itzel Martinez and David J. Bohnet.